Harness-buckle.



E. 0. DRAKE & E. s. BROWN.

HARNESS BUCKLE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 12, 1911.

1,061,955, I I Patented May 13,1913.

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COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0., WASHINGTON, D

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EMMETT C. DRAKE AND ELISHA S. BROWN, OF BLOCKTON, IOWA.

HARNESS-BUCKLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 13, 1913.

Application filed June 12, 1911. Serial No. 632,702.

To all whom, it may concern Be it lmown that we, EMMETT C. DRAKE and ELISHA S. BROWN, citizens of the United States, residing at Blockton, in the county of Taylor and State of Iowa, have invented a certain new and useful Harness-Buckle, of which the following is a specification.

It is the purpose of our invention to provide a harness buckle for securing together in the construction, arrangement and combination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in our claim and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows a side elevation of part of a set of harness, equipped with our improved buckle. Fig. 2 shows a top view of the buckle with the hame tug and trace attached. Fig. 3 shows a side elevation of a part of the buckle, and Fig. 4 shows a side elevation of another part of the same.

In the accompanying drawings, we have used the reference numeral 10 to indicate a horse collar upon which is a hame 11. Secured to the hame 11 in any suitable way is a hame tug 12. Secured to the hame tug 12 by our improved buckle, is a trace 13 which may be received at its forward end in a loop 1 1 on the hame tug. Our improved buckle is comprised of three independent parts which are secured together and to the trace and hame tug when the buckle is assembled and attached to the harness. A side elevation of the central member of our buckle is shown in Fig. 3. It will appear from said figure that viewed from a side elevation, the central portion of the buckle is apparently rectangular in shape. The sides 15 of said central portion are S shaped and are parallel to each other at a sufficient distance apart to receive between them an ordinary trace or hame tug. The ends of the S shaped side pieces 15 are connected by integral cross members 16. At each end of the central buckle member are buckle members such as that shown in Fig. 4, which comprise parallel side portions 17 an end portion 18, a central cross portion 19 and a second end portion 20. The opening inclosed by the portions 18, 19 and 17 is substantially rectangular in shape and is wide enough to receive the end of the central buckle member. We preferably bend the ends of the side portions 17 adjacent to the end portion 20, slightly toward each other and away from the plane in which the main portion of this part of the buckle lies, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. Centrally located on the portion 18 is a round lug 21 designed to be received in an opening in the harness. The end buckle members are exactly alike except that upon the sides 17 of one of them,-

In assembling our buckle and securing it to a hame tug and trace, we insert one end of the central buckle member into the opening between the portion 18 and the portion 19 of one of the end buckle members, as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2. We theninsert the end of the hame tug through the opening between the end 20 and the cross portion 19, and also adjacent to the end 16 and between the same and the member 19 and draw the hame tug through. understood that our buckle is designed to be used with straps having holes punched in them. We draw the hame tug through the openings described in the buckle members until the lug 21 is in position to be received in oneof the holes 23. e then push the hame tug against the member 18 so that said lug is received in said hole. e then place the other end of the central buckle member in the opening between the portion 18 and the portion 19 of the other end buckle member, as shown in Fig. 2. On one of the end buckle members, when thus assembled the lug 21 is directed outwardly, and on the other is directed inwardly and the opening between the portions 19 and the ends 20 of both the end buckle members is on the side thereof farthest removed from the other buckle member. We then insert the trace 13 between the end 20 and theportion 19 of the other end buckle member, and between the end 16 of the central buckle member and the member 19 of the other end buckle member until the lug 21 is in position to be re- It is ceived in one of the openings 23 in the trace. We then push the trace closely against the portion 18 until said lug is received in said opening. The back band is secured to the upper loop 22 and the belly band is secured to the lower loop 22. Suitable loops 14: are provided to receive the ends of the hame tug and trace.

It will be seen that when our improved buckle member is used, the distance between the hame and the back band may be regulated by placing the lug 19 in different holes in the hame tug, and the distance between the back band and the swingletree may be regulated by placing the other lug 19 in different holes in the trace 13. In the ordinary harness where the ordinary buckles are used there can be no independent ad justment between the back band and the hame, and also between the back band and the swingletree. The length of the tug is ordinarily made adjustable in some way, but the distance between the back band and the hame cannot be usually varied and where it can be varied the adjustment is not independent of trace length adjustment. Attention is also called to the fact that the wear on the straps with our buckle is not wholly by the lugs 21, but on account of the curved form of the ends of the central buckle member, the friction of the fastening is spread over considerable surface so that the buckle grips the strap over the whole length of the ends 16 and the portions 20, 19 and 18.

We claim as our invention:

A harness buckle, designed for use with straps having holes therein, comprising a central buckle member constructed with parallel S shaped sides, integral end members connecting said sides, two end buckle members each comprising parallel sides, the ends of which are curved at obtuse angles to the main bodies thereof, an end member connecting said sides at one end thereof, a lug on said end member extending at right angles from the plane in which the main portion of said end bucklemember lies, a cross member connecting said sides near the middle thereof, a second end member connecting said curved ends, said end buckle members being designed to be detachably mounted on opposite ends of said central buckle member, with the end of the central buckle member received between the cross member of the end buckle member and the end member thereof bearing the lug, said end buckle members being arranged with their curved ends away from the central buckle member in opposite directions.

Des Moines, Iowa, May 29, 1911.

EMMETT O. DRAKE. ELISHA S. BROWN. Witnesses:

GEORGE R. WILLIAMS, VALTER FREEMAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

1 Washington, D. O. 

